At Love's Temperature
by Ainorei
Summary: In the future, Misty and ash live in a sad place, their lives ruined but why? even in such a sorry state there is still space for laughter. Chapter 3 up!
1. Hot blooded

Ai no ondo de

At Love's Temperature

Part One- Hot Blooded

By Ainorei

"Welcome to Mc Oak's, how may I help you?"

"Umm…I'll get two Charizard-grilled Mc Oak burgers, a large coke and a large Fanta."

"So that's two Charizard-grilled Mc Oak burgers, a large coke and a large Fanta. Would you like fries with that?"

"Yeh, ok."

"Small or Large?"

"What?"

"Fries."

"Oh, large."

"Dine in or take away?"

"Take away."

"That's eight pokenoe."

"Ok, here."

"Wait…it'd be cheaper if you just got two Mc Oak Value Meals with a Fanta instead of a coke.."

"Yeh, whatever, just hurry up."

"Ok then, that's seven pokenoe ninety."

"Wow, heaps cheaper."

"I live to serve."

"Thanks. Hang on, I gave you a twenty, and I only got two pokenoe ten back."

"No, it was a ten."

"I swear I gave you a twenty."

"Maybe you're delusional."

"Excuse me?!"

"I said, maybe you're del…"

"I know exactly what you said!"

"Then why did you imply that you didn't?"

"I was implying that you'd better give me the correct change."

"I did."

"That's it, I want to speak to the manager."

"He's out."

"Then I'll wait."

"Do you want a tray?"

"Why?"

"Because I suppose you'll be dining in now, unless you like cold burgers."

"Look, I'm on a date."

"Oooh, Mc Oaks, very fancy indeed."

"Shut up, I'm on a budget."

"Budget date, lucky girl, or boy."

"I'm not gay."

"Never said you were."

"You implied it."

"Here we go again. Who's that?"

"My date."

"She's on a budget too isn't she?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"The amount of material covering her body. Here, I'll chuck in a couple of napkins."

"SHUT UP!! What have you got against me anyway?."

"Don't pretend you don't know."

"Is it because of my grandpa? The fact that he can fire your sorry ass?"

"No, Gary. It's because you ruined us. Your stinking lying ruined everything."

"Misty? Is that you?"

"Ash hasn't been the same since."

"Like I care. What, isn't Ashy-poo giving you any?"

"That's none of your business."

"Really Misty, you should have stuck with me and you wouldn't be in this predicament."

"And stoop that low? No thanks."

"It's higher than you are right now."

"No thanks to you. Look, you've got your burgers, and I've got customers, so go."

"Fine. And I'll be back about that money."

"You're such a Meowth, hoarding money."

"At least I've got something to hoard," he grabs his tray, "Bai-bai snookums."

"Whatever, ugly turd."

What a creep. I slip the twenty into my pocket and turn to serve my last customer. My shift is almost over, I wish it wasn't though, I don't want to go home, it's full of negative energy, negative people. Better than staying here though, and watching that loser flirt with his bimbo of a girlfriend. I pull my identity card out of the till, take off my tie and hat, and lift my turquoise jumper off of the rack next to the back door. Gary's girlfriend's giggles are drowned out by the icy wind that greets me as I leave the store, the icy wind that mocks my trapped existence. Walking home I start to think why I'm even returning, Ash wouldn't notice if I didn't, he doesn't care about anything any more, not since he stopped battling. But I love him, I'm loyal, no matter what happens he'll always own my soul, and inside I know he loves me, although it wouldn't hurt if he told me so…once in a while. I suppose that's why I'm walking home, to beg him to love me like he used to, to beg him to want me, admit that he needs me. Plus I'd have to walk against that icy wind if I were going the other way. 

          It's starting to rain so I find the nearest undercover area, a deli a few blocks away from my flat. Seeing as I have twenty pokenoe spare, courtesy of the personification of idiot itself, I decide to pick up a few groceries. The electronic doors open and I walk over to an ESB (Electronic Shopping Booth) and swipe my card, an electronic voice welcomes me and asks for my selection. As I scroll through the products I check the ingredients of various tinned foods, everything is made from some kind of hasseino kankin, it's like a genetically engineered bacteria that can be made to taste, smell, and appear like anything. Since the eating of Pokémon was banned by Poke-activists, nothing is real food, except for fruit and vegetables, so I suppose now food at Mc Oaks really is 0% real meat. Kind of disconcerting. I decide on two tins of discount Pokémon food, a bag of rice, a tin of Pidgey flavoured hasseino kankin, and some Teriyaki sauce. The electronic voice thanks me, takes my money, and gives me one pokenoe fifty change. I'll find that my groceries have been transferred, much the way Pokémon are, to my fridge at home. Funny, they'll transfer Pokémon by particle beam risking their lives with an unsafe technology, but wouldn't dare do it to humans. Once I came home to an inside out orange, just imagine the effect it could have on a Pokémon, they'd probably prefer to be eaten.

          Outside the shop the rain has stopped and the wind is blowing harder than ever, pushing me home. I feel a strange shiver go down my spine, it's hot and pain is pulsing throughout my entire body. As it stops I fall to my knees and I feel like I'm glowing with warmth, but it quickly leaves and the cold returns, it was like a demon passing through me, and now I know that I have to get back to my flat before 'it' does. Something is wrong.


	2. Elekid Fizz

Ai no ondo de

At Love's Temperature

Part Two- Elekid Fizz

By Ainorei

          I eye the tomato sauce on the kitchen table. It's so beautiful with it's red bottle, gleaming like a dew covered rose. Ahh…If only I could just touch it, taste one drop of that magical sauce, I just want to leap forward and…THUMP!! I forgot about the window. Darn it, Pokémon proof locks –my plan has been foiled yet again. What's that? Oh no…the Professor, if he sees me up here there's no way he's gonna let me watch 'Big Pokémon', and I'm sure Magicarp's gonna get evicted tonight. But the sauce, it needs me…I'm coming my love!! Now if I can just…pull…this…thing…out…and… GASP! Losing footing… about to fall…forgive meeeeeeeeeeee

"PIKAAAAAAAAAA!!!" No! I'm falling.

"Pikachu?"

"AAAAAAAAAAAA!!!" There goes the third floor…

"Not again.."

"AAAAAAAAAAAA!!!" …And the second…

"I'm coming!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAA!!!" …Ground is very close now… "AAAAAAAA..CHU?!"

"Got you." He caught me! Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.

"Pi-ka-chuuu!"

"What were you doing all the way up there?"

"….pi-pikachu?" Bird watching?

"Hmmm…or were you looking for this?" Ahh!! The Sauce! The Sauce! He got me the Sauce!! –How'd he do that? Never mind, it's here now. Gimme Gimme. 

"What do you say?"

"Piiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii?" Please? I'll love you forever and ever, and I'll wash your car and I'll clean the…YAY!! Mmmmm….Sauciness...ness…ness...ness… 

"I think your sauce craving is becoming a bit of an issue Pikachu."

"Chu, chu." Yeh Yeh, Whatever. Just because you can't see the beauty in mother nature's greatest ever creation.

"Do you have any idea of what they put in that stuff?"

"Pikaaa. Pikachu pikaa. Chuu pika." Yeh. I've read the label, I'm not an idiot. It's made of numbers. Lots of them, and funny curvy things too.

"Whatever you say." It's late afternoon and it's beginning to get cold. Professor Oak is sitting on a bench next to me, and the sky is turning magenta. I can see other Pokémon playing on fields in the distance, I like it better here though. Some of them are starting to head toward the berry bushes for dinner. Speaking of dinner, this sauce is really good. Ever since Ash left me and the others to be taken care of by the professor, it's been one of my main comforts. That and annoying the hell out of Gary's lot. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a bad Pokémon, I'm just lonely, and angry. But Ash will come soon, and then we'll show them. We'll show them once and for all that Gary is a liar, a loser, and an all out idiot. The professor's looking at me now, he's always worrying about me. I start to scull the tomato sauce, it somehow makes me feel better.

"I think it's time we take you to see someone Pikachu. Your sauce cravings can't be healthy. I don't understand why you'd prefer to binge tomatoes instead of making friends, you didn't do this when you first came here. You know, I have a friend who has majored in Pokémon psychology." Say what? "And it might help you build some better relationships, you seem to have trouble accepting that Ash might not have what it takes to start over." Not have what it takes? Excuse me? I can feel anger raging inside me, electricity is building in my cheeks. Ash's voice yells inside my head –Pikachu, thunder-shock attack!!

"Pi….ka…..CHUUUUU!!!" Oak's face is charcoaled, and he's twitching with electricity, "Pika Pi Pikachu!" I'm outta here, no one can talk about Ash like that.

"Pikachu, come back here. I didn't mean it like that…" Stupid professor. What would he know anyway. Me and Ash, we're the closest thing since tomatoes and sauce, and nothing is ever gonna change that. He's just busy, that's all, just busy. He'll come and get me any day now. I've ran across the yard and am hiding behind a berry bush. 

"Pikachu come out please. You can't stay in there all afternoon." Wanna bet? Just watch me. "You're gonna miss 'Big Pokémon'…"

"Chuuu pi." Go away. It's tempting though, slowly I move forward out of my secret cubby behind the bush (it's really cool, it's got a table and everything).

"That's better. Now listen to me. I know that you might get a bit lonely sometimes being so secluded from the others, but it's your own fault. I really want to let you go out and join everyone else, but you have to promise me that you'll stop stalking Gary's Pokémon and threatening to sacrifice them to a 'Sauce God'."

"Pikaa." He he he…I freaked them out so much…

"Wipe that grin off your face. Now I don't know exactly what caused all this, and I understand that Gary might be a little unfair towards you and Ash sometimes, but that is no reason to take it out on a bunch of perfectly nice Pokémon. Fair enough, you got angry at me for making that comment about Ash, and I take it back. But I want you to remember this…no matter what happens, it's important to look for the good in people. If you can try and see that innocence, any problems can be resolved, even grudges as bad as you have against Gary and his Pokémon. Maybe it would be easier if you had sympathy for them because they have to put up with such an umm…overly confident young man…yes…that's it. Anyway, consider yourself lucky that you've had the change to work with such a great trainer and kind person, and try to show that in the way you act. I'm sure Ash has forgotten about what happened, and so should you." I suppose he has a point, even though Ash holds grudges worse than I do. Oh look, I've finished my sauce, ewww, and I don't feel too good either.

"Pikachu, are you ok?"

"Chuu.." Ewwww..

"I think we'd better get you inside. Your show's about to start anyway." He picks me up in his arms and carries me towards his house, just like Ash used to before I came here. I miss him so much, and Misty. She hasn't even seen Togepi yet, it hasn't evolved, but I swear it's taller than it used to be. I'm feeling sleepy…I'm gonna miss the show if I fall asleep…oh well…as if anyone would let Magicarp win. It'll probably be Elekid, he's so cool. YAWN….Sleepiness…ness…ness…hmmmmmm……

WELCOME TO THE DAIREEGU CHAMPIONSHIPS AT THE NEW POKELAKE RESORT

TODAY IS OUR FINAL CHAMPIONSHIP BATTLE BETWEEN OUR UNDEFEATED CHAMPION RYUCO OF POKELAKE AND THE VERY TALENTED ASH KETCHUM OF PALLET TOWN

ASH STANDS SECOND ON OUR MASTER BOARD WITH GARY OAK COMING A VERY CLOSE THIRD…BUT WILL ASH MAKE IT TO NUMBER ONE LEAVING EVEN RYUCO BEHIND HIM? WE'LL JUST HAVE TO WAIT AND SEE…

"Pikachu! I've been looking everywhere for you, where have you been?"

"Pikachu!"

"What's that in your paw? It's us! On a T-shirt! Wow!"

"Pika!"

"I guess this means I've finally made it. I'm finally gonna be a Pokémon master…after all this time. Of course I'll have to beat Ryuco first, but then I've done it. I even beat Gary, we beat Gary."

"Pikachu."

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN PLEASE TAKE YOUR SEATS FOR THE LAST BATTLE OF THE DAIREEGU CHAMPIONSHIPS!

"Are you ready Pikachu?"

"Pi."

"Everyone in your Pokeballs ready?"

"_Shake_."

"I guess it's time then."

"Ash!"

"Misty, Brock, Tracey!…Mum!"

"We all just wanted to wish you the best of luck Ash."

"Thanks Mist."

"Not that you'll need it."

"Thanks Mum."

"You'll always be my Pokémon Master Ash."

"Muuuuum. Everyone's watching."

"What's wrong with them seeing how much I care about you."

"Nothing, I suppose."

"Are you wearing that underwear I sent you?"

"Yes Mum…"

"Ok. I'd better get back to my seat. Have fun out there."

"I will."

"Bye Ash. Go kick some Poké-butt!"

"Bye Brock, Tracey. See ya."

"I'll be here after the battle ok."

"Thanks Misty, I'll be carrying the winner's trophy."

"No doubt about that. Well, bye Ash."

"Bye Misty."

"I love you Ash."

"I love you too."

"_Kiss_."

BEFORE THE BATTLE STARTS BE SURE TO COLLECT YOUR REFRESHMENTS FROM THE POKÉ-TERIA. DON'T FORGET TO TRY NEW ELEKID FIZZ.

"Pikaa."

"Yeh Pikachu?"

"Pika Pika, aaaa."

"You thirsty?"

"Pii"

"Ok. What do you want?"

"Pikapipi."

"Elekid Fizz?"

"Pi!!J "

"In the yellow bottle?"

"J "

"And with a twisty straw?"

"J "

"Alright."

"Pika pika pikaaa!"

"If you have to go to the toilet half way through the battle don't blame me. It's gonna start soon so go and sit on the side over there, I'll be there soon."

"Pika. Pikachu!!"

"That's ok."

"Where's Pikachu going Ash?"

"Hi Gary. He's gone to wait for me, I'm getting him a drink."

"Oh."

"He wants one of those Elekid things."

"Like this?"

"Yeh. I'd better go, my battle starts soon."

"Oh no, you don't want to miss it. Here take mine."

"You sure?"

"Absolutely! It's my way of saying thanks for a great battle."

"No hard feelings about me beating you?"

"Ha! Of course not."

"Thanks Gary. I'll see ya."

"Yeh. See ya."

"Pikapipi!"

"That's right! Elekid Fizz! Courteous of Gary Oak."

"Pi?"

"I was a bit surprised too, I suppose he just realised that if you can't beat 'em join 'em. And he's decided to join me. Can I have a taste?"

"Pika."

"Hey, that's good. You had enough?"

"Pikachu."

"Allrighty! Lets go!"


	3. Blood stained pink frilly socks

Ai no ondo de

At Love's Temperature

Part Three- Blood Stained (Pink Frilly Socks)

By Ainorei

          I pick up the gun. The metal is freezing cold but I don't really notice, it's about the same temperature as the rest of the flat because we can't afford heating. We. What will she think? I suppose all I've done is cause her trouble, it's better like this. Life is pointless anyway, why don't they just tell us that life sucks instead of building up our hopes and dreams and then watching them fail. They all watched mine fail. I search for two bullets that I've hid in my draw, I don't really need two, but I can see myself being so uncoordinated that I'd stuff this up. Better safe than sorry. Found them, now to put them in the gun –refer to section 3A. Jeez this is complicated, how do you open it? OUCH! Shit, I cut myself, how the hell did I manage to do that? I don't like pain, if I did I'd probably use a knife to end it all, at least knives don't need instruction manuals. There we go, now I can be found dead with a 'how to use a gun' booklet, a bullet in my head, and a pink frilly sock wrapped around my index finger. Joyful. 

"Ash, are you there?"

Bugger. She's home.

"Ash…Ash!! What are you doing?"

"Nothing…" I put the two bullets into the gun as she enters the room.

"Bull. Give that to me." She steps slowly towards me, I wish she didn't have to see this.

"Misty, this is none of your business. Go away." I lift the gun to my head, pulling back the top trigger thingy.

"Oh haaa ha, very funny. Drop it."

"Please. I want you to go."

"Ash? Come on. It's ok."

"I've had enough Misty, it's best for the both of us." 

"What? Talk to me. Put it down. We can work this out…" Her voice is getting shaky, I'm sorry Misty.

"No, it's not about us. There's a note for you on the bed, it explains everything. Read it in about 5.."

"Ash, you wouldn't. We can talk about it."

"…4…"

"Please, don't. Just calm down."

"…3…"

"Ash, you don't want to do this. Ash, just listen to me."

"…2…" Tears start to well in her eyes so I turn my back to her, no use postponing this any longer.

"No. No! I'm begging you!"

I whisper, 'one', and hear Misty scream my name, but before I can pull the trigger she jumps on top of me, I fall flat on my face, and the gun flies forward and hits the wall. Why on earth did she do that? Everything was going just fine until she came home. Now I'm laying here with a 'how to use a gun' booklet, a pink frilly sock wrapped around my index finger, and with a red headed girl on top of me!! I don't mind the latter too much. I sense her breathe out and start to relax, it's all over now. I feel the warmth of her body seeping into me, and now that I think about it, we haven't been this close in a long time, but before my hormones kick in and the incident becomes even more embarrassing, I start to turn on my side to get up. As I sit up, I can see her teary eyes looking at me, puzzled, trying to figure out what I was thinking.

All I can manage to say is, "Hi."

"How could you?" She stands up and sits on my bed, "How could you be so selfish?"

She's starting to cry, I reach my hand up to wipe away her tears, but she pushes it away, I decide it's best I don't move, and stay seated on the hard cement floor.

"How could you be so selfish as to throw away everything because you're in a bad mood. Huh? What about Pikachu? Did you think about him? Did you think about me? Did you? I hope you didn't, because that means you would have decided to go ahead with it anyway. Well? Go on. Explain yourself." 

"I didn't mean to upset you."

"What did you think would happen?! I refuse to believe that you're so stupid as to think that I'd just wander on in here, see you sprawled out dead on the floor, and think to myself 'Oh well, shit happens'. Well shit does happen, why can't you just accept that some things just don't go your way. Huh?" Before I can speak she stands up and walks over to where the gun lay on the floor. I can't help but wonder if she's angry enough to shoot me, not that it would work anyway, it probably needs batteries or something. She picks it up, and drops it again almost immediately, I can see from where I'm sitting that her hand is bright red.

"What is it?" I quickly stand up and rush to her side.

"It's hot, boiling hot." I bend down and touch the gun, but it doesn't feel like it is, or has been, hot enough to burn someone. In fact it's as cold as ice.

"That's weird," I reply, glad that something has dragged her attention away from blasting me, "I think we've got some burn cream somewhere in the kitchen, I'll go look."

She follows me into the kitchen and sits on the shelf, while I'm searching through every cupboard to find something to stop her fingers from blistering. I find a small tube of BurnHP, a human equivalent to a popular Pokémon brand, in a cardboard box on top of the fridge.

"Why did you use my Tentacruel letter writing set?" Misty asked me as I turned to see her holding the envelope I had left for her on my bed.

"Only paper I could find." 

"And my multicoloured Starmie pencil?"

"Sorry about that."

She sniffs the envelope, "AND my favourite perfume?"

"Well, I wasn't sure what time you'd be home. It was in case I got a bit smelly after being dead for a few hours."

"You'd need more than my perfume."

"Yeh…well…you're not gonna read it are you?"

"Maybe, maybe not. Depends." She slipped it into the pocket of her jeans, but winced with pain as she pulled her hand back out. It's bright red. I take her hand into mine and start applying the cream. Her skin seems so fragile, she's like a china doll, with cerulean blue eyes and baby pink lips. And I almost broke her.

"I'll be ok now."

"You sure."

"Yeh."

I put the lid back on the tube and place it in the cardboard box on top of the fridge.

"Ash."

"Yeh."

"Would you really have killed yourself?"

"I suppose."

"I don't understand. Why?"

"Because nothing seems worth it any more. You do, of course, but I'm just dragging you down. I can't do anything except battle, and that's no use to me now."

"Yes it is…"

"No it's not. After what happened to Pikachu.."

"What happened to Pikachu wasn't your fault."

"Everything's my fault. The way we are is my fault. This crappy flat, having no money, no fun, no life...it's all my fault. And you deserve better Misty, and I'm sorry."

"That doesn't mean you have to cark it. I'm sure if we thought about it, I don't know, maybe, maybe you could go back to battling again. I could join you, we can live on the road like we used to." She's standing in front of me now, eyes full of excitement, pleading with me like a little girl who wants an ice-cream. Maybe she's right, what's past has passed, a long time ago.

"Is that what you want?"

"It's what we both want. It'll be fun, and what have we got to lose anyway."

I look around the gutted flat, there's nothing but an old torn up lounge, mouldy spaces on the wall where the last inhabitant's furniture used to be, a couple of wooden stools, and a black and white TV. Everything's been found or borrowed, at least on the road we take what we need, and majority of it belongs to us.

"What the hell. Let's do it!"

"That's my Pokémon master!" Misty says victoriously, as she wraps her arms around me, "everything's gonna be ok now."

After a few seconds I pull back, and stare into her eyes, smiling. 

"You're bleeding!" I look down at my finger, and sure enough the sock has fallen off and there is a thin stream of blood running down my hand.

"It's nothing, c'mon, lets go get our Pokémon."  I put on a bandaid and we walk hand in hand out the front door.

*** I was notified by Winged Racoon about the lovely thing my computer had done. The 'J's are meant to be smiley faces, but when I turned it into a htm it didn't show up. Sorry to all those that were confused, guess you could imagine it as a'pi' sounding like a j.***


End file.
